Though The Undertaker hasn't worked a match since 2020, with his final “Boneyard” match wrestled versus A.J. Styles and The Good Brothers at WrestleMania 36 and his final traditional match coming one month prior in the “Tuwaiq Trophy Gauntlet” at Super ShowDown 2020 in Saudi Arabia, the rumor mill has consistently found ways to keep “The Dead Man's” name alive for fans hoping to see one more one final ride.

Sitting down with Tony Hawk and Jason Ellis for their Hawk vs. Wolf show, Taker noted that while he appreciates that fans want to see him back in the ring, he just can't physically wrestle up to his usual standards.

“Absolutely. If I was physically able to do it, I would be out there right now,” Undertaker said via Fightful. “There is a huge amount of our fanbase that will grade you on a curve. They understand that you're getting long in the tooth, you have a lot of miles on you, but they just want you out there. Then there is one part of that fanbase, ‘Ah man, he's old, he shouldn't be out there, he shouldn't be doing this.' Without any hesitation at all, if I felt like I could go and deliver, and deliver a performance that people expect when they see my name on the card, I would do it, but I know I can't.”

Disappointing? Eh, maybe a little bit, but do you know what? It's nice to hear a performer be open about wanting to maintain their character's aura instead of negatively affecting his legacy by turning in a below-average match for the thrill and the paycheck. Still, fans can still get their fix of Undertaker content, as he's transitioned seamlessly into retirement, with podcast appearances, Super Bowl commercials, and a very successful One Deadman Show that runs alongside WWE “Premium Live Events” more often than now, even if he wouldn't agree.

“It's been a horrible transition. I don't know that I'll ever find a passion like I did for actually being in the ring. I'm doing the one man show, and I'm enjoying that and it's new to me, so I can pour myself into it again, but I don't know if I'll ever have that passion that wrestling gave to me. I watch the product and I'm like, ‘damn, I would have done that differently.'”

Could fans eventually see another cinematic match featuring The Undertaker? Will he eventually walk around a graveyard, a haunted house, or even a… Firefly Funhouse? Yes, while Taker may not be able to work a traditional match with exchanges, bumps, and comebacks, working a cinematic bout where he can hit his moves via well-blocked camera angles and musical cues to heighten the tension is very much a possibility, as anyone could look like a real wrestler with some movie-making magic. Still, for now, The Undertaker is keeping his trench coat at home, and fans will have decades of matches to rewatch on Peacock when they're missing “The Dead Man.”

The Undertaker details the challenge of working angles in the social media era.

Elsewhere on his post-wrestling media tour, The Undertaker was asked about what it's like to work angles in the social media era on Hot Boxin with Mike Tyson and noted that wrestling fans have changed considerably since he was in his prime.

“For me, it does. Just our fanbase in general, they are more concerned now with what's happening behind the scenes, not so much what's going on in the ring,” Undertaker said via Fightful. “They want the dirt. It's just like anything else in our society and it's all social media driven. Everybody puts their life out there. It's hard for me, watching everything, ‘you're this guy on TV and then you go on social media and you're somebody completely different.' For me, it's a huge disconnect. It is what it is and that's where we're at. I don't necessarily like it, but there's nothing I can do about it. That's just the way it is. It makes things harder. It really makes things harder to have good storylines and people invested. Guys give everything away.”

Is Taker correct? In a word, yes; fans are incredibly interested in what's going on behind the scenes in professional wrestling companies, sometimes more so than what's being broadcast on television, and will seek that information out even when it doesn't supplement or even contradicts what's going on in the storyline. Fortunately, Taker doesn't have to worry about pretending he's a living deadman or lives in an urn in 2023, which is probably for the best.